


Ocean Eyes

by AngelaCake



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Allura is a badass, Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Catamounts, Fluff, Hunter Keith, Hunter Shiro, Laith, Leith - Freeform, M/M, Magic, Maybe angst, Mind Control, Minor Adam/Shiro - Freeform, Mostly Fluff, Pidge is a Witch, Shiro is missing, There is absolutely NO dubcon or noncon in this i s2g, Vampire Lance (Voltron), Vampires, Werebear Hunk, Werewolves, Witches, actually idk about better but i can promise its way more gay, i fuckin love catamounts so lets get those guys in here, i mean theres not gonna be any smut anyway but i thought i should make that one absolutely clear, just in case the mind control tag raised some red flags., keith is sad, lance is a disaster, lance was turned into a vampir a year and a half ago, minor romelle/allura, so hes still pretty bad at it, so like the show but better and more gay, tell me he wouldnt be, the mind control is for goofs im not going to make it creepy or gross, there may or may not be fae, yorance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-04
Updated: 2018-10-31
Packaged: 2019-07-06 18:06:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15891252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AngelaCake/pseuds/AngelaCake
Summary: “I hope you’re right, man. But if you expect me to cover your shifts until you recover, all because you just had to stroll through Hunter-territory and steal a motorbike and get a terrible headache from enthralling some random dude to get away, then, well… you’re wrong.”Or, Lance is bad at being a vampire and Keith is bad at hunting him. During the day, Keith works at a magic cupcake cafe.





	1. Joyride

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone, thanks for checking this out! I'm not sure how long it's going to be, but hopefully it'll stay on the shorter side or I don't think I'll ever finish it. I've had this idea for a long time, and I'm finally posting what I've got in my notebooks. I love vampires and awkward adventures in your 20s, so this is hopefully gonna combine the best of both worlds. The chapters are probably going to be short, again, so it's easier to update, so I hope that's not too much of a pain. If you get bored, well hey, my other klance fic has 8 chapters up, so why not check that out? I mean it's got 100% less magic, but it has about 500% more goofs, so hopefully that makes up for it. That's definitely not a shameless plug. Anyway, hope you like it!

The graveyard was cold and gloomy, which isn’t exactly surprising for a graveyard. Keith stared at the pale lichen overtaking rows of crumbling stone crosses and tried to rub his hands together for warmth. His driving gloves left his poor fingers vulnerable to the nighttime chill, but they were the only gloves he felt comfortable wearing while riding his motorcycle. Everything else felt like it got in the way of really feeling the road beneath his wheels, and he hated not being able to pilot Red at 100%.

Keith blew on his hands again, eyeing the shadows of the mausoleums ahead. Shiro had taught him never to take unnecessary risks, and never to engage your enemy on their home turf. The things they hunted were so much stronger than humans like him, there’s no reason to give them any more advantages than they already have. But Shiro wasn’t here. If Keith wanted to stand a chance of finding his adopted brother, he would have to do things the more experienced hunter wasn’t willing to do.

So Keith stepped further into the dark grassy area. He moved slowly, listening for any sounds at all, taking care to keep an eye on his surroundings. For about two minutes. It was frustrating. Shiro had taught him to move carefully, that slow is much better than dead, that just because Keith’s night-vision and hearing were a little better than the average person it was no reason to slack off. But all he really wanted to do was charge ahead and rip open the doors to every crypt, shouting at whatever he found inside to give him his brother back.

Instead, Keith stuffed his hands in his jacket pockets and glared at the small, ancient graveyard in front of him. Whatever. It’s not like he would find anything if he just stood at the gate and argued with himself. Might as well just go in.

 

\- - - - -

 

Two hours later, Keith was standing right back at the entrance and glaring at the empty parking spot where he’d left Red. He’d spent a cold and miserable time scouring the churchyard for any sign of undead activity, any kind of ghoul or wraith or spirit, only to come back empty-handed and find his bike missing. Oh he was going to kill someone over this. Who the hell steals a motorbike out of a cemetery parking lot? 

He glanced around one last time, then jogged down to the end of the driveway. Sure enough, he heard the faint growl of an engine, signaling that Red was at least still nearby. He caught sight of the bright red and yellow taillights of his best friend, slowly moving away from him into the darkness, and broke into a frenzied sprint. Gritting his teeth, he pulled the keys from his pocket and started pressing buttons frantically. 

The lights ahead of him flashed brighter at first, then on-and-off, joined by his blinking hazard lights. Even at this distance, he could hear the surprised yelp, followed by a scream as his alarms blared to life and rang out across the empty road. Keith smiled to himself. The would-be thief dropped the screaming, flashing bike to the asphalt and dashed out to the  side of the road. Keith grinned and turned left to intercept the fleeing joyrider.

A few minutes of breathless chase across the park and Keith could feel himself closing in on the bike-thief. This kind of action was just what he needed, something to get his blood pumping after another disappointing night of no progress. His heart beat wildly in his chest, thrilled to be moving, even though bike-thief wasn’t particularly fast. Then again, few people were as fast as Keith. He sized up his prey, steadied himself, and leapt.

Two bodies hit the dirt hard, and Keith threw his arms around the other person’s legs, pinning their knees together. The thief gave a high-pitched shriek and started smacking at Keith’s face and arms, squirming and kicking in an attempt to get free. Keith just tightened his grip.

“Dude, let go!” The bike-thief kicked again, almost dislodging Keith’s hold, but he rolled the other person over and grabbed one of their arms. Keith pushed forward until he was kneeling on the other person’s thighs and had their arms pinned with his elbows, forearms pressed tightly against bike-thiefs chest. Bike-thief kept squirming as Keith tried to get a good look at their face. Finally they jerked their head up to stare Keith straight in the eye.

He breathed out slowly, frozen in place as he stared at the stranger. The man had deep blue eyes that seemed to shimmer in the low light. His pupils dilated slightly, and Keith found himself going completely still. For a moment, the only sound he could hear was the stranger’s shallow panting as he struggled to catch his breath.

“Get off me.” Keith was up and standing away from the man before he even registered the words. They had a heaviness to them, sinking deep into his mind. The man staggered to his feet, and Keith could see that he was tall and lean, still looking back at him with those vibrant ocean eyes.

The stranger brushed himself off, checking his clothes for any stains or dirt before speaking again. “Dude, I think you tore my favorite jacket. Come on, who just tackles people like that? I swear I’ve never seen anyone run that fast!”

The voice was higher this time, almost a whine, and so different from before that Keith blinked and stepped back. Who was this guy? What had he been doing? Was he just running? He must have been. He felt a little winded, but his head was kind of heavy and sluggish, which didn’t make any sense. Running usually cleared his head, so why did he feel so foggy?

Cold fingers touched his cheek and Keith jerked his head up, startled. He’d forgotten the other guy was still there. Now Keith was looking back into those eyes and his whole mind went blank. He felt captivated.

“Don’t follow me.”

The words felt like they were vibrating, echoing slightly against the inside of his skull. Keith became aware of his surroundings slowly, looking around in confusion and trying to get his bearings. By the time he had grounded himself back in the present, the stranger was gone.

Keith stared at the grass in front of him, completely unable to remember which direction the stranger had run off in. He had been mind controlled. That guy had taken complete control of him. With nothing but a look. He had completely taken over Keith’s body, leaving him dizzy even now, who knows how many minutes later.  _ Shit _ . Keith shuddered, the realization of what had just happened hitting him like a cold fist in the stomach. That bike-thief, the one he chased down without a second thought, was a vampire. Keith was lucky to be alive.

 

\- - - - -

 

“You stole a motorcycle? What the fuck, Lance?”

Lance groaned and rolled over on the ratty couch, pressing his face deeper into the cushions. The lights in their living room were way, way too bright, and Hunk’s anxious scolding was way too loud. Together they were giving his killer headache even more teeth to sink into Lance’s tender, fragile brain.

“I didn’t steal it,” Lance protested. “I just gonna take it for a ride and then bring it back. The guy caught me before I even got to the end of the driveway.”

“Uh, yeah, probably because you stole his bike! What were you even doing out there, man? You know Hunters love running around that cemetery.” Hunk glared down at his roommate, who was too focused on the pounding in his skull to notice. “You probably shouldn’t hang out at any cemeteries, honestly, unless you really want to get caught.”

“Just relax, dude. I got away, didn’t I? And there’s no way that guy was a Hunter. Kinda cute and totally psycho, and I think maybe he had a mullet, but definitely not a Hunter.”

Hunk frowned and then sighed, letting out a little of the tension in his shoulders. “Well, yeah, I guess you did enthrall him and everything, but you still shouldn’t take stupid risks like that. Now this guy knows you’re out there. What if he calls a Hunter? Or what if he sees you on the street? What are you gonna do if you run into him at the post office, man?”

Lance opened one eye slightly and peered at his roommate. “Why would I be at the post office?”

“I don’t know man, maybe you need stamps. It doesn’t matter, what are you gonna do?”

Lance frowned into the couch cushions. He hated how much sense Hunk was making. Hunk had always been on the anxious side, but whereas Lance felt like his own anxiety always drove him to do the stupidest stuff, Hunk’s just seemed to drive him to be extra careful. It made him a good temper to Lance’s carelessness, but that didn’t make it any less frustrating when he was right.

“Relax, Hunk, it’s a big city. We probably see a million faces a day. Even if I do see him again, there’s no way he’ll remember me.”

The larger man sighed again and crossed his arms. “I hope you’re right, man. But if you expect me to cover your shifts until you recover, all because you just had to stroll through Hunter-territory and steal a motorbike and get a terrible headache from enthralling some random dude to get away, then, well… you’re wrong.”

“Aw, Hunk!”

“No way, dude. You’re on your own.”


	2. Charming

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter, but the next one should be up much sooner than last time.
> 
> Oh, also, I got a ko-fi now! http://ko-fi.com/angelacake If you feel like sending me anything. No pressure though, it's seriously enough just to know ppl are reading my work, but if you do have a couple of extra dollars, and you do want to kick them my way, please do so! Or if you really like my stuff share it with some friends. And again, thank you for reading so far! I hope you like the chapter.

Keith struggled through his day at work, groggy from the constant late-nights and _light_ mind-control. He messed up coffee orders left and right, and got scolded more times than he had since training. By the end of his shift he felt even more like shit than he had that morning. As he pulled his favorite jacket on, he felt a hand on his shoulder.

“Hey man, are you okay?” Keith looked up to see Matt’s golden-brown eyes watching him carefully.

“I’m fine, why?”

“I don’t know, you just seem really out of it today. Did you go out looking again last night?” Matt peered at him closely, face scrunched up in concern. Keith shrugged.

“Yeah, just a little. Didn’t find anything.”

Matt chuckled. “Yeah, I figured. I don’t think you’d be here if you had.”

Keith looked away, avoiding his gaze. Matt was right. If he’d actually gotten some leads, the last place he’d be is at work.

Matt patted Keith’s head, which he knew Keith hated. “Just promise me you’ll try to get some sleep, okay? You know Shiro would never forgive me if I let you burn yourself out looking for him.”

Keith scowled and didn’t answer. He appreciated Matt checking in on him, but bringing up Shiro was a low blow, and it wasn’t going to make a difference anyway. Shiro could yell at him after Keith found him. Until then, Keith was going to do whatever it took. He turned to leave the narrow back room when a thought occurred to him. “Hey, Matt?”

His taller coworker turned from where he’d been walking toward the kitchen, a little surprised. “Uh, yeah?”

“Your sister’s a witch, right?”

“Um, yeah, she is.”

“Can she make charms? Like the one Shiro had?”

Matt’s brow furrowed, his expression growing cautious. “Maybe. What kind of charm?”

Keith debated how much to tell him, before deciding it was easiest to just come clean. Matt would probably know if he lied. “I, uh, ran into someone last night. I’m not sure what he was, but he glamored me.”

Matt’s brows shot up and his eyes widened with alarm. “Dude, what? You were glamored? What happened, where were you?”

Keith held up his hands in a placating gesture. “It’s okay, I’m fine, I swear. I was at that old churchyard in Central Park. All he did was tell me not to follow him. I just don’t want it to happen again.”

Matt crossed his arms and leveled a disapproving look at Keith. “I’m going to need way more than that to know if we can do a charm. Come by my place when my shift is over. We’ll talk about it then.”

Keith sighed. “Fine. I’ll see you later.”

Matt looked like he wanted to say more, but he just shook his head and turned back toward the front of the shop.

 

\- - - - -

 

Lance gritted his teeth as he shook the margarita mixer, the sound of ice hitting metal threatening to make him pass out. Two days since the unfortunate bike incident, and he still felt like he had the world’s worst hangover.

Somehow Lance managed to get through and pour the frosty drink out into the appropriate glass. He slid it down the counter to Nyma, one of the regulars. She winked as she set down a tip and sauntered away. Lance grumbled under his breath and turned back to work. Usually he’d be thrilled for a woman as beautiful as Nyma to be flirting with him. In fact, he used to have a pretty big crush on her. Until they went on a date. She’d called him cute, then palmed his wallet and ditched him. Needless to say, he was kind of over it. Even if she did have beautiful eyes.

The second she was gone, Lance threw an arm over his eyes and stretched out over the bar. “Hunk, man, you gotta help me,” Lance whined to his fellow bartender. “I’m not gonna make it another minute here, I feel like I’m dying.”

“Why is it my job to cover you whenever you stay out late?” Hunk complained. “I wanted to have a movie night, with popcorn and those peanut butter cookies and hot fudge and maybe some nachos… oh man, we should’ve had a movie night.”

Lance rolled his eyes even though Hunk couldn’t see it. “Yeah, yeah, I know, I’m the idiot. We’ll do movie night next time, I promise, but dude! This headache is literally gonna kill me. And I’m undead!”

Hunk patted his deflated friend on the back. “Come on, Lance. It’s an hour and a half. You can make it.”

Lance gave out a monstrous groan before heaving himself up off the bar. He caught sight of a flash of green as he did and perked up. “Yo, Pidgisita!” he called out, jumping up and waving his arms as if he wasn’t one of six people in the whole room.

The girl at the door jumped and immediately tripped, clinging to the huge bag hanging off her small shoulder as she caught herself quickly. “Wh- ugh! Lance!” She straightened her glasses and glared at the grinning boy behind the bar. “You almost made me drop my laptop. What do you want?”

“Do you have anything that can make this headache disappear? I had to enthrall someone a couple nights ago and I still feel like my head’s gonna explode. I can’t even get my full nine hours of beauty sleep.”

Pidge rolled her eyes at Lance’s pout and puppy dog eyes, but she moved closer to the bar anyway. “Dumbass, you know yearlings can’t do thralls. Whatever, I’ll do it, but only because I know you’re giving Hunk hell about this.” Lance did a fist pump and let out a loud whoop, even though it made him double over with a spike of pain. Hunk breathed an exaggerated sigh of relief and looked at Pidge over their moaning friend.

“Thanks, Pidge. You’re a lifesaver.”

“No problem, man. Lance, I need you to text me who you glamored, what date, what time, how long it lasted, where you were, and what you made that poor sap do.”

“Awesome! Thanks, Pidge, I knew you’d come through.”

Lance scribbled down the information to the best of his memory on a napkin, and Pidge and Hunk shared an exasperated look over the bar. For a vampire, Lance could be such a baby sometimes.

 

\- - - - -

 

**4:41** _ Mattelangelo _ : game jam sesh my place tn?

**4:43** _ Pidgeons_Coup _ : i wish i gotta make a charm for lance

**4:44** _ Mattelangelo _ : oh shit yeah i needa make 1 too!

**4:44** _ Mattelangelo _ : my buddy got in a scrape

**4:47** _ Pidgeons_Coup _ : lance needs a glamor headache taken away

**4:48** _ Mattelangelo _ : lmao lance

**4:48** _ Mattelangelo _ : classic bby vamp

**4:49** _ Mattelangelo _ : what did he try 2 get a # or smthg?

**4:53** _ Pidgeons_Coup _ : fuck if i kno but u know that mf

**4:53** _ Pidgeons_Coup _ : hell whine for a wholeass week if i dont get this to him asap

**4:55** _ Mattelangelo _ : tru

**4:56** _ Mattelangelo _ : charm sesh my place tn?

**4:57** _Pidgeons_Coup_ : c u there }:)


	3. Friday Night Bites

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while and I'm so sorry for the wait. Life is kind of rough, but writing this is so fun and I'm so grateful for the kind words people have said about the story? So thank you, and here's the next chapter of messy magic kids. Enjoy!
> 
> (also I have a ko-fi now if anyone has some extra money they'd like to throw around to a desperate internet gremlin https://ko-fi.com/angelacake )

“Here you go dude,” Matt said, handing a small pouch to Keith as they got ready for the morning shift. Keith pocketed it before tying on his apron.

“Thanks, man. I don’t want to get caught like that again.”

“That one’s only going to last until the next full moon, okay?”

“Wait, what?” Keith looked up in alarm, not sure how useful a charm that would last maybe three weeks was going to be.

Matt held up his hands. “I’m sorry. Katie’s working on whipping up something more permanent, but until then this’ll have to do.”

“Okay, thanks.”

Matt shook his head. “You gotta be more careful, Keith. I know it’s hard, but seriously, it’s dangerous out there.”

Keith couldn’t even meet Matt’s eyes. He’d searched every graveyard near where Shiro was supposed to be when he’d gone missing. He scoured the news daily, looking for any sign of someone who could be Shiro. He’d dropped out of college and asked Matt to get him a job at Allura’s bakeshop so he’d have more time to search. He’d lost the crappy apartment he and Shiro had shared, and moved into a crappier apartment of his own. He’d gone hunting every single night he was physically able to, and some nights he arguably wasn’t.

It had been a year.

Keith still wasn’t sleeping.

They moved to the front of the shop to start the day. Matt flipped on the lights and the music. Keith unlocked the door and fired up the cappuccino and espresso machines. They both set up the register, all just in time for the early morning rush. New Yorkers really like their coffee.

Allura’s bakeshop, called The Little Lion Bakeshop, was a small place located in downtown Manhattan. They had a lot of competition, but never any trouble attracting customers. No one was sure how the bubbly proprietress got her coffee so nuanced and rich, her pudding so smooth and well-flavored, or her cupcakes so tasty and creamy. They just knew that it was her shop they wanted to step into in the mornings before work and sometimes even on the way home.

Some people might say that weaving magic into your food is cheating. Allura would say that it’s playing to your strengths.

After the second daily coffee-and-breakfast wave, Keith leaned over the register and watched Matt wiping down tables. He fiddled with the charm now hanging on a string around his neck and tried not to focus on how bored he was. Matt finished cleaning the delicate patio furniture that dotted the small space and slung the rag over his shoulder.

“BTdubs, my sister is stopping by later with a couple of friends. They’re doing something for Allura I think. That okay?”

“Yeah, no problem.”

“Sweet, she really wants to get this done before the next full moon.”

Keith shrugged. Matt gave him a sunny smile that made Keith feel guilty for not being more enthusiastic. Matt talked about his little sister constantly, but so far Keith had never met her. It was hard to get excited about meeting new people, but he felt like could’ve tried a little harder. Apparently, Matt’s sister looked exactly like her brother and was an absolute genius and magical prodigy. Which, coming from Matt, was pretty high praise. Matt was the smartest person Keith had ever met, if you asked him.

Not ten minutes later, the doorbell chimed and Keith looked over to see three teenage-looking guys walking through the door. So maybe Matt wasn’t the best at timing, but Keith completely forgot whatever comment he was about to make when his gaze landed on the first boy. Keith was absolutely certain he’d seen him somewhere before. He was lanky, dark-skinned, and probably latino. He was the tallest person in the room except for Matt, with the clearest skin Keith had ever seen in his life. It looked so soft. The boy had short brown hair, delicate features, and a pronounced slouch. And his eyes…

Keith couldn’t place the guy for the life of him, but he couldn’t get past the boy’s eyes. They were so blue. Deep blue. They looked like the ocean on a clear day. They looked like they were glittering. He just wanted to stare at those eyes. He wanted to look at them forever.

“Yo, Keith!”

Keith jumped three feet in the air and knocked over the tip jar. It thudded loudly to the floor, small coins scattering everywhere. “Shit!” Keith hoisted himself halfway over the counter to check out the damage, embarrassed at having startled so easily.

“Dude, are you okay?”

Keith looked up to see two identical concerned faces hovering next to him. He briefly wondered if he had somehow hit his head and was seeing double, before he realized only one of them was wearing glasses. Stupid Holt family and their stupid genes.

“Uh…” Keith looked around and realized everyone in the shop was watching him with various levels of confusion and concern. The identical faces belonged to Matt and a very short person who looked exactly like Matt, except without glasses, and Keith felt stupid for not immediately realizing that this was Matt’s sister. She had been the one to ask if he was okay.

Keith scrambled to regain his composure and stood up straight. “Uh, I’m fine,” he said a little louder than necessary and felt his face turning bright red. He had just lost it over a pretty boy in front of his coworker, his coworker’s little sister, and her friends, one of which was the pretty boy. God, he would never live this down. He would have to avoid looking at the maybe-stranger and his mesmerizing eyes if he didn’t want to completely embarrass himself again.

What was even happening? Keith had never been the type to fawn over a guy he’d just met, but he couldn’t get those beautiful blue eyes out of his head. He hadn’t so much as checked anyone out since he’d lost Shiro. He’d been single-minded, one purpose at all times, and now he was losing it over a cute boy!

Keith stared at the floor, deeply uncomfortable.

“Um, okay,” Matt’s sister spoke up hesitantly. “Matt, your friend is really weird. Anyway,” she turned back to her friends. “We should start setting up. We’ve got about two and a half weeks until the next full moon, and we’ve got to have it ready by then.”

The other guys nodded, and with that, Matt led her and her friends to the backroom.

 

\- - - - -

 

Lance spent the afternoon hauling bags of tech into the office of The Little Lion Bakeshop and running out to the local witch store for last-minute herbs and candles. He grumbled as Pidge pointed him to various points on the iron circle inlaid in the office’s floor where she needed things set up.

“I better be getting something good after all of this. I didn’t know I was signing up for hard labor when you roped me in.”

“Please, like this is any harder than stocking your weirdo bar,” Pidge replied without looking up. “Besides, you already got a gift from me to clean up the headache you got from being a dumbass.”

“Hey!” Lance whirled to face Pidge, who was fiddling with her laptop on the floor. “First of all, there is nothing weird about The Castle, thank you very much, and second of all, it was self-defense! I was in a life-and-death situation, you goblin.”

Pidge rolled her eyes. “Some guy tripped you. It wasn’t exactly a close encounter.”

“He was trying to kill me, I know it! His eyes flashed bright yellow and I swear he left bruises.”

“Sure, Lance.” Pidge still didn’t look up.

Lance took a deep breath to tell her off when he was cut off by Hunk. “C’mon guys, there’s no point in fighting,” he said from the spinning desk chair on the other side of the room. “This is the first time we’ve ever seen Allura’s bakeshop. We should be celebrating, not arguing.” He punctuated his plea with an appreciative bite of one of the cupcakes Matt had brought them.

Lance smiled at Hunk’s sunny outlook. “Yeah, you’re right, bud, this is pretty cool.” He grabbed one of the other colorful confections and dug in. The whole thing was gone in about three bites.

“Damn, what does Lulu put in these cupcakes?”

“Call her that to her face, I dare you,” Pidge said, finally looking up from whatever she was doing with her laptop. “Have you guys seriously never been here? Hunk, I thought you would live in this place.”

The big guy shrugged and leaned back in his seat. “Yeah, I want to spend more time here, but Allura doesn’t really like her clientele mixing. She says they don’t get along.”

“Which is totally not true, by the way,” Lance cut in. “I famously get along with everyone.”

Pidge snorted at that, but Hunk kept talking. “Seriously, I would love to work here, like the bar is cool and all but they serve actual food here. Not that I don’t like mixing drinks, but it’s just different, you know? I’ve gotta convince Allura I can keep it together, though, or I’ll never make it.”

“Well, that’s what we’re here for, buddy,” Pidge grinned, and Hunk gave her a hopeful look in return. “As long as you don’t touch my equipment, I got your back.”

 

\- - - - -

 

“You gave them cupcakes?”

Matt shrugged and pushed his glasses further up his nose. “I’m using my bonus for a good cause. What’s the point of working at a bakeshop if you can’t score free cupcakes every once in a while?”

The boy smiled back as Keith gave him a skeptical look. Allura definitely preferred for her books to line up, but hell if he was going to make a fuss about it. It was Matt’s funeral, and he had bigger things to worry about.

He mentally reviewed the patrol route he was going to take tonight as he wiped down the front counter. He tried to make it to all the local graveyards fairly regularly, but they were all so old and closed up that there was almost never any action. He hadn’t checked out Washington Square Park in a while, and that was a pretty big hangout for the younger shifters, vampires, and even the occasional fae (That is, the ones who were adventurous enough to set up in a big city). The stoned college kids made easy prey for them. Hunting there was almost considered relaxing, which of course made them easy prey for Keith. He’d try to end his night at a hospital, too. Creepy-crawlies sometimes flocked to them, and it was a good place to keep a close eye on. Sick people really don’t need to worry about ghouls and revenants while they’re trying to heal, and hospitals tended to spawn a lot of them.

“So what’s your deal with Lance?” Matt interrupted Keith’s mental planning, and he realized he’d been wiping down the same spot on the counter for about six minutes.

“What?” Keith asked, not sure who Lance was.

“Katie’s friend? The tall, thin one? His name is Lance. You were staring at him and then you got all weird and out of it.”

Keith shifted defensively. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Now it was Matt’s turn to be skeptical. “Seriously, dude? You were staring so hard you didn’t even hear me introduce you. Katie had to basically yell in your ear to get your attention.”

Keith crossed his arms. “I, uh. I just got caught off guard.”

“Caught off guard?” Matt repeated, sounding like he believed exactly 0% of Keith’s explanation. Then something shifted, and he gave Keith an evil smile. “Oh man, wait. Don’t tell me you like him? Is that what ‘caught you off guard’? The fact that you find Lance absolutely irresistible?”

Keith felt his face heat up and cursed his inability to control a goddamn blush. “No! I didn’t- that’s not what I meant. I don’t find him attractive, he looks like- like-” Like his eyes were undiscovered celestial bodies that Keith could spend his whole life exploring.

What the fuck?

Matt grinned and opened his mouth to say something else when they heard a voice calling from the back. “Hey, nerds!” The voice shouted. “Get your bitchasses over here and help me!”

Matt leaned back against the counter. “I need to keep the shop open, Katie. I’m trying to keep my job!” he shouted back.

“This is part of your job, you shit! Come on!”

“What are they doing?” Keith asked. “I just saw a ton of computers and candles.”

Matt shrugged. “Allura said it was important. We should probably go help.”

The image of blue eyes flashed in Keith’s mind. “I, uh. I should keep the shop open. You should go see what she wants.”

“Honestly, she’s not going to let it go until we’re both back there. Might as well get it over with, right?”

“Hey! Shitheads! Don’t make me come back there!”

Keith looked over at Matt. “Does she always curse this much?”

Matt laughed and shook his head. “Since she was 13. Thought she’d grow out of it by now.” He walked over to the door and flipped the door sign to closed. “Come on, she probably won’t bite.”

With those comforting words, the two of them headed to the back office.

 

\- - - - -

 

“If your name is Katie, why do we call you Pidge?” A voice asked as Keith entered the now crowded room. Matt’s sister glared at the lanky boy- at Lance- from her position on the floor.

“Because shut up, now move your ass,” she snapped, pointing over the computer in her lap at the corner of the room. To a confused Keith, it looked like she was holding a gaming computer. Lance muttered something under his breath and carried a blue candle and a satchet of some strange-smelling thing over to where she had pointed. He looked up and noticed Keith trying not to look at him.

“Oh, hey, it’s you!” Lance said enthusiastically. “I’m Lance, the handsome one.” He tried his best to make two finger-guns with his hands full and gave Keith a smile and a wink. “The angry demon on the floor is Pidge,” he said, gesturing to the aforementioned demon, who growled something quietly and kept typing, “and the big guy in the middle is Hunk! He’s our resident ray of sunshine.”

Hunk smiled and waved, and Keith realized he was a pretty big dude. He stood in the center of the room. He was darker than Lance, and maybe taller, though it was hard to tell because Lance was always slouching. He was definitely broader though, and much taller than Keith. In fact it seemed like the only person who wasn’t was Pidge. Katie. Matt’s sister. Whatever he was supposed to call her.

“Uh, hi.” Keith gave a small wave of his own, not sure what to do.

“Well?”

Keith glanced over at Lance’s corner of the room and quickly looked away to avoid those eyes. “Well, what?”

“Well, usually when someone introduces themselves, you give them your name and say, I don’t know, nice to meet you or something,” Lance said patiently, gesturing at Keith.

“Right. I’m Keith. I work here.”

Pidge and Hunk both chuckled at Keith’s awkwardness, but from the corner of his eye he saw Lance smile, not unkindly. It helped him relax a little.

Then Matt shoved a bundle of nasty-smelling herbs into his hand and pushed him by the shoulders over to the corner next to Lance’s. Keith wrinkled his nose. “Ugh, what is this?”

Matt gave him a weird look. “Uh, that’s rue, I think. Did I give you the right thing?”

Pidge glanced up quickly. “Yup, that’s rue, don’t worry about it. It’s supposed to be bitter.”

“Oh, yeah, it’s super bitter,” Hunk chimed in. “It’s really important in a couple types of cuisines, but it’s not really common, which is why you won’t find it in a grocery store. Well, usually you won’t. Some people use it to repel cats.”

“Who would want to repel cats?” Lance exclaimed. Hunk looked at him over his shoulder.

“Uh, I don’t know, but that tends to be why people plant it.”

“Well, that’s shitty,” Lance crossed his arms and scowled. “Cats are great, everyone should love cats.”

Keith could feel himself smiling at the sheer level of annoyance Lance had for the idea of someone wanting to get rid of cats. The blue leafy bundle in his hand smelled absolutely horrible, and Keith had the feeling he was going to be nauseous if he held it too close, but as long as he held it at arms length he should be fine. Matt took up a position across from him, holding another bundle of something that smelled infinitely better than rue, and a yellow candle.

“Alright, we’re almost ready, hang on,” Pidge said, fiddling with some cords and going around the room to check the various appliances Keith was just now noticing on the floor. It looked like there were a series of dehumidifiers and projectors lined up around the iron circle in the floor, connected by a mass of extension cords to two laptops and the office desktop. Pidge handed him a tall red candle, then grabbed a green one for herself and positioned herself in the last corner. They all stood around the edges of the circle, holding their different colored candles and bouquets of various herbs, except for Hunk, who stood in the center with a black candle held in both hands.

Keith tried to catch Matt’s eye, before giving in and deciding to just ask. “Hey, uh, what are we doing actually? Like, what’s with the candles?”

Pidge peered around Hunk to look at Keith. “We’re establishing a circle of energy so the spell can draw from each of us,” she said flatly.

“Oh. Okay.” Keith didn’t want to ask anymore questions, but he still wasn’t sure what that meant. He sighed, deciding to just get it over with. “And, what spell are we doing?”

Pidge looked over at him, like she didn’t really understand what he was asking. Thankfully, Matt chose that moment to step in. “Yeah, Katie, I don’t recognize this combination of herbs. We’re doing something with transformation, right? And it’s gotta be strong, because of the amplifiers, but uh… are we casting a spell on Hunk?”

“Wait, do they not know?” Lance piped up.

“Know what?” Keith asked, starting to get a little annoyed. He knew witches tended to get caught up in what they’re doing, especially since witchcraft took so much focus and study, but it wouldn’t have killed Pidge to explain a little bit to them.

In response, Pidge gave a long-suffering sigh. “I guess Allura didn’t explain it? Hunk wants to work at the bakeshop, but things get really weird around his transformation, so Allura wants us to find a way to stem that energy and like, keep it confined to just the full moon, or even get it so that Hunk can just transform when he wants to, but that spell is gonna take a while to pull off, so right now we’re just laying the groundwork for a containment spell.”

His transformation? Keith paled. The full moon. Hunk’s transformation. Holy shit. Hunk was a shapeshifter. Keith hunted shapeshifters. What kind of shapeshifter? Oh god, probably some kind of predator? Otherwise, Allura wouldn’t be so worried. Oh shit, what if the spell ended up going wrong and Hunk transformed right here and now, in this tiny room surrounded by people? He kept his weapons in his locker. He wasn’t even planning on fighting a shifter today. They could all die. Why were they doing this here? Why did Allura employ a dangerous creature?

“Uh, Keith?”

Keith looked up to see that Hunk was giving him a worried look, and once again, everyone in the room was staring at him. He immediately felt guilty. Did he just think of Hunk as a creature? His hunter instincts were going wild, but Hunk seemed so nice and so friendly. Then again, the really dangerous monsters always do. Could Hunk be a monster? No, he wants to work at a cupcake shop, how could he possibly be a monster?”

“You okay, buddy?” Hunk asked.

Keith swallowed, his throat feeling completely dry. They’re all just looking at him like this was normal. “Yeah, I’m fine. Sorry, I just, uh, I didn’t know.” Keith ducked his head, hoping they didn’t see how uncomfortable he felt.

“I probably should’ve told you,” Matt said awkwardly. “My bad, I didn’t really know what we were doing today, I guess I didn’t think about it. I’m sorry, guys.”

“No, no, it’s totally fine!” Hunk said quickly. His voice sounded a little tight, but Keith wasn’t sure if he was hearing that right. “I guess we should’ve talked about, uh, all of this before we just jumped in like that, but that’s not your fault! Seriously, don’t worry about it, everything’s fine.”

Everything’s fine. Did that mean Keith could ask more questions? He might as well try, right? Would he get another chance?

“So, um, what are you?”

Everyone turned to Keith. Pidge was giving him a suspicious look, and both Matt and Hunk looked stunned. Keith took care not to check Lance’s reaction. Hunk opened his mouth and stuttered for a second.

“Oh, I’m, like, a bear? I mean I’m a Werebear, but I wasn’t bitten or anything I was just like, born with it, you know?”

Keith didn’t know. He thought all Weres were bitten, that the curse couldn’t be passed through blood. “I didn’t know that. I thought shifters that were born that way could change at will? Or the change is like, tied to a specific emotion. Don’t Wers have to be bitten?” He thought he knew that. That was what Shiro had taught him. To be fair, they hadn’t spent a whole lot of time on shifters. Shifters were usually just like people. Wers were the dangerous ones, but they were still super rare. Maybe Keith had misheard him? Or he skipped that part of the bestiary? He did always prefer fieldwork to studying.

“Yeah, a lot of people think that, but actually the difference is, uh… different. Shifters can change at will, and they’re still, like, themselves when they’re changed? But Wers are like, tied to the moon and stuff. They don’t get to have any kind of control.” Hunk fidgeted and gave the floor a tiny kick.

Keith tried to smile, feeling guilty about bringing the mood down. “So you turn into a bear? That’s really cool.”

But Hunk wasn’t smiling anymore. He was looking down at his feet. “If you’re uncomfortable or something, that’s, uh… that’s fine,” he said. “Like, I understand. We can wait for Allura to do this if you want.”

Keith could feel more than see Pidge glaring daggers at him. Matt wasn’t looking at him at all. He wasn’t sure, but he thought Lance might also be bristling at Keith for making his friend feel like this. He had never been good at making friends, but Keith was pretty sure he’d never made anyone dislike him this quickly before, and definitely not three people. Keith shook his head vehemently.

“No, it’s fine! I still want to do this. I’m sorry, Hunk. It just caught me off guard. It’s fine, I want to help.” Keith had never been good with words, but he smiled and hoped that was enough to ease the tension in the room. At least enough to make Hunk smile again.

Hunk did smile. Right at Keith. “Thanks, man.”

“No, there’s really nothing to- to thank me for. Let’s just keep going.” Keith’s face still felt like it was burning, and he could still feel the others staring at him with what were probably less than friendly looks, but Hunk was smiling again. That was enough for now.

Pidge took a breath and started to read out from the notebook laying at her feet.

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know what you think! I'm not sure I'm going to keep writing this one, but if enough people are interested I definitely will. Plus, I just love reading comments. It honestly makes me feel so warm :)


End file.
